Still Like the Sun
by carrotycake
Summary: What started out as an innocent day trip turns into something more. When you have so little time, shore leave is never going to be what you expect. Galen/Juno pairing. Again, fluff ahead. You have been warned.


**A/N:** Continuing in the category of "unashamedly fluffy Galen/Juno scenes", here we are. It's just fluff, although I'm working on something longer and a bit more substantial at the moment; I've had this hanging around my hard drive for a while, and it kinda ties in to what I'm working on! heh heh.

if you do find any spelling mistakes, grammar issues etc: don't hesitate to let me know! I'm just a terribly sloppy writer at times. As always, I own nothing except this ridiculously fluffy plot. :P

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 **Still Like the Sun**

"Are you sure this is the right way?" Galen brushed an obstructing branch out of the way for him and Juno, stepping over thick roots and grass.

"I'm positive," the pilot replied nonchalantly, a few paces ahead of him.

"Because I'm fairly certain we've passed this tree already."

Juno turned and shot him a glare. "Are you questioning my navigational skills?"

Galen coughed. "Er, no. Not really." He paused, thinking. "Well, yes. I am."

"Hmm. You should have more faith." Juno grinned wickedly, hoisting her backpack further on to her shoulders. Galen strode to catch up with her, shaking his head.

They were currently docked with the Alliance on the small planet of Talus, and much-needed shore leave had been declared not long after they landed with the Rebel fleet. Galen and Juno had taken the opportunity to disappear, although Galen was not entirely sure that Juno's idea of 'disappearing' for a few days was the same as his. It was the middle of the afternoon of their first day off, and so far, they had taken a shuttle to a forest a few clicks from the port, and just _walked_. Juno had assured Galen that she had a plan, but he wasn't so sure.

"I do have faith," he said, glancing at her. Her white-blonde hair was bound up in a messy bun, a few stubborn strands escaping in the humid heat. They had both changed out of uniform and into attire more appropriate for the warm climate, although it seemed that military-issue boots were still necessary in the thick undergrowth. Juno, without the aid of the Force, had tripped on more than a few overgrown roots. Turning to look at him, she raised an eyebrow.

"Enjoying the view?" she smirked, and Galen flushed. He tended to forget sometimes that he was staring at her, still forgetting that she was an incredibly beautiful person. Time together was sparse, what with their respective positions in the Rebel Alliance, and they tried to take every moment they could get. Three days of shore leave felt like a wonderful eternity, void of responsibility and decisions, at least for the time being. This was their break, and he'd be damned if they didn't get to enjoy it.

He coughed, moving over his embarrassment. Juno shook her head, smiling, and returned her attention to the path – or lack of – in front of them. After a further half hour of trekking through the overgrown forest, the trees started to thin out slightly and the sun started to peek through the gaps in the trees. Eventually the trees thinned out so much to the extent that Galen could see beyond them, and realised that they were approaching what appeared to be the edge of a cliff.

"Here," Juno said, throwing her backpack down at the base of a tree and jogging to the very edge of the cliff. Galen followed her, and together they stood, looking out at the view. It was at least a fifty-foot drop to the ground below, what seemed to be miles and miles of flat grassland. In the distance, he could see the sea, and the square, grey buildings that signified the port. Every few minutes, a shuttle would rise up and zoom off into the atmosphere, presumably to join its mother ship orbiting the planet.

"It seems we're never far from things, are we?" he mused, folding his arms. Juno snorted softly.

"No, I guess not." She reached over and took his hand. "But we have three days off. Might as well enjoy them while we can. Now, come on. You can help me put the tent up."

"The...tent? Is that what you've been carrying this while time?" He had offered to take some of the load, but she had refused.

"Well, where did you think we were going to sleep?" Juno looked at him, bemused.

"I...I don't know," he admitted, sheepishly. "I've never done this...sort of thing before." Darth Vader hadn't exactly encouraged holidays, and he didn't remember much of his childhood before that. Shore leave and tents and holidays and _relationships_ were a new thing to him, and he felt ashamed.

Juno's face fell briefly, and he half expected her to apologise. He didn't want her to apologise. His upbringing certainly wasn't her fault, and he needed to let her know that.

"Galen, I..."

"Wait," he interrupted, waving her down. "Don't apologise. Just...show me. I mean, show me what – what normal people do. So I can learn."

Juno nodded, understanding. "All right," she said, walking back over to where they had left their bags. She sat down and started unpacking various poles and sheets, frowning slightly in concentration. "It's been a while since I've actually put up a tent, though, so I'm not sure how good a teacher I can be."

Galen snorted, kneeling and helping her to pull the remains of the tent out of her bag and lay it all out on the grass in front of them.

"When was the last time you went camping?" he asked, curious about her childhood. It was a subject they didn't often discuss, though he wanted to change that. Juno smiled distantly, her tongue between her teeth in concentration as she sorted out the poles into colour-coordinated piles.

"I used to go with my family when I was very young. We lived the middle of the city, so we didn't see much green space, you know? So every so often, my dad would take me and my mum hiking into the bamboo forests and we'd set up camp for a night or two. Nothing fancy, but it was nice."

Galen attempted – _attempt_ being the key word – to unfold some of the tent material, and Juno laughed - "No, not like that. Like _this,_ " – and reached over him, trying to rectify the tangled mess that he had inadvertently created. He marvelled at the domesticity of it all; never in his short life would he have considered doing this before he met Juno.

"But to answer your question," she continued, "I haven't been camping since I was about nine. My father was never in the mood after my mum died, so we just...stopped. I didn't want to, anyway. Anything we used to do as a family reminded the both of us of my mother, and it hurt."

She paused, frowning. "Probably not the correct way to deal with grief, but never mind. That was ages ago, now." Juno turned to look at him. "Heh. We're both messed up, it seems."

Galen shrugged. "So it seems," he replied with a half-smile, "But we make it work."

"Well..." said Juno, gesturing to the crumpled pile of tent, "Some things more than others."

He snorted. It was hard for either of them to disagree with that. Looking over at Juno, he caught her eye and her face split into a reluctant smile. Standing up, she waved a hand dismissively at the hopelessly disassembled tent.

"Plenty of time to finish that later," she murmured, sliding her fingers through his and kissing him on the cheek. He blushed at the unexpected gesture.

"What was that for?"

Juno shrugged shyly. "Just because. I'm taking advantage of our limited freedom." She led him back over to where the trees thinned out and they could see an entire landscape spread out in front of them. Together they sat down at the base of a particularly large Roshyr tree, a species particularly abundant on Talus. Its branches were spread far out, waving lazily in the gentle breeze and providing shelter from the sun beating down on them, making dapples on the forest floor. Juno sighed happily and leaned into him, yawning.

"Galen?"

"Hmm?"

"Tell me what you're thinking."

"What, right now?"

"Yes." Juno stretched her arms out, shutting her eyes sleepily. Galen smiled down at her, reaching over to stroke her hair.

"Um. I'm thinking that…I've never felt as happy as I do now…here, with you."

"Really?" She sounded surprised, but pleased.

"Yeah. It's beautiful here." Galen truly meant that. In his previous life, he never felt it necessary to appreciate beauty and nice things. Now – well, Juno and the Rebels appeared to have changed his perspective a little. He supposed Kota would say he was 'getting soft', but he didn't really mind too much.

"…and the company's not too bad, either," he finished, glancing at Juno to gauge her reaction to his feeble attempt at a joke. She duly frowned, mock-punching him on the chest.

"Watch it," she warned, sitting up and glaring at him. Her expression then softened, and she brushed a hand softly over the side of his face. She then drew her legs up to her chest and hugged them tightly, watching, with some content, the rays of the setting sun on the horizon. Galen sat and watched her for a while, feeling his heart swell. She hadn't noticed him staring, her eyes taking on that faraway look they often did whenever she had time to think by herself.

"Well, what are _you_ thinking right now?" he asked her, sitting himself up and leaning his back against the spongy bark of the tree. Juno turned her head and gave him a half-smile, her expression still distant.

"That we don't get enough time off like this."

"Too right," agreed Galen, closing his eyes for a second and trying not think about anything to do with the Rebels.

"Also…my comlink has been flashing for at least three hours," she sighed, reaching over into her backpack to show him, "They probably want us back soon."

Galen groaned softly. "Ugh. It's only been a day. We were promised three. Surely it can wait."

Juno had found the offending device, and was now holding the flashing object in her hand, looking thoughtful. "Hmm."

"Juno? What is it?"

She grinned impishly. "Well…we're completely lost in this forest, right? I mean, all the trees look pretty much the same, and I'm not even sure where we left the shuttle…"

Galen frowned, confused. "But the shuttle, we left it with that farmer, by that large outcrop of…oh. I see," he said, cottoning on to Juno's meaning. She was nodding at him, eyebrows raised.

"You see? No one needs to know that we are _not_ , in fact, hopelessly lost, wandering the forests of Talus in circles, searching for our shuttle." She yawned, and lazily aimed her comlink at her backpack. It missed, but she ignored it, turning back to Galen with a sly grin.

He blinked at her, dazed. "Wow. You are, uh…incredible sometimes."

Juno blushed, but quickly regained her composure. "Only sometimes?" she jested, leaning next to him and nudging him gently in the ribs with her elbow. He nudged back, and Juno laughed, causing Galen to break into a reluctant smile.

"Of course…" he began, "…we still don't have _much_ time left, even if you have bought us some time by, ah, throwing your comlink away."

"What are you suggesting?" Juno had raised one eyebrow and was now looking at him with a mischievous glint in her eyes. Galen swallowed, suddenly nervous.

"Well...I, uh…" It seemed eloquence wouldn't be his friend today. Juno rolled her eyes, and snaked a hand around his neck.

"Just stop talking," she murmured, pulling him towards her and kissing him hard on the mouth. Galen was more than happy to oblige, running his hands through her hair and kissing her back just as fiercely. They broke apart for a short moment to catch their breath, Juno pressing her forehead firmly against his with both arms around his neck. Galen smiled against her mouth, and felt her hands run fervently over his back, pulling at his shirt. He reciprocated with pleasure, and soon the majority of their clothes were strewn around them in a tangled heap.

"Was this the kind of _leisure activities_ you intended happening when you got us lost?" Galen teased, feeling a soft _thump_ on his side as Juno pretended to hit him.

"Very funny," she breathed, leaning her face closer to his, "But it's certainly not a problem, if you ask me…"

Her discarded comlink lay in a rough patch of grass next to them, still flashing. They both continued to ignore it, content to be wrapped up in each other for the time being. Time was of the essence here, and neither of them were going to waste it talking.


End file.
